The CARS mindset you bring to a passage can matter more than how well you read. Ariana, one of our CARS instructors, learned that the hard way!
She had always been a strong reader, and three months before her MCAT, CARS was her lowest section at a 125. She scored a 130 on test day.
In the video above, she explains the one shift that made the difference. Here's the written version 🙂
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From a Natural Reader to a 125
Ariana had always been what you'd call a reader. She did well on the reading sections of the ACT and the DAT without studying for them.
So her first MCAT diagnostic surprised her. She scored about a 127 in CARS, lower than she was used to, though she had months to go.
Then, three months before test day, she took a practice test and scored a 125. CARS had gone from a surprise to her lowest section by far!
She was studying part-time while in school, with family commitments on top of it! So she spent the first stretch on the sciences. About six weeks out, she turned her full attention to CARS.
Why She Bet on CARS With Six Weeks Left
With limited time, Ariana realized she could raise her science scores, but probably not as high as she'd like, since she didn't have time to memorize every detail.
CARS was different. You don't need any background knowledge for it, the way you do for Chem/Phys, Bio/Biochem and Psych/Soc. A top CARS score comes from your CARS mindset and how you approach the passages!
That makes CARS the section to lean on when you're short on time or unsure your science sections will be as high as you want.
If you're short on time like Ariana was, our 6-Week Live MCAT Accelerator lays out the plan across every section, with seven 1:1 sessions with a 515+ scorer built in.
What Her Old CARS Mindset Was Costing Her
Two problems kept showing up for her, and you might recognize both!
- She got lost in the details. She spent too long trying to absorb every phrase and lost the thread of the passage.
- She got stuck between two answers. One choice always sounded perfect and turned out wrong, while the one that sounded off was right. (If that's you, here's what to do when you are stuck between two answers.)
She tried writing paragraph summaries from a prep book, which helped a little. Six weeks out, she moved to AAMC material and gave each passage extra time so she could see what she was missing.
After a few passages, she noticed something simple. The information she needed was always in the passage.
The CARS Mindset Shift: Analysis Over Comprehension
Ariana had been answering CARS questions the way you'd handle a reading comprehension test. Read something, understand it, then pick the answer that sounds like what you understood.
That's good news if you've never thought of yourself as a strong reader! Ariana credits this one change in her CARS mindset with her success. If she could tell you one thing about CARS, it's this.
The Patient-Chart CARS Mindset
Think about medical school, which everyone describes as drinking from a fire hose. You won't have time to read every textbook page in depth.
It's the same as a doctor. Some patient charts are thick, and you can't read every detail of every one.
So you read for the gist. You work out what's going on and what the main ideas are, then you circle back and fill in the details you need.
That's the CARS mindset Ariana brings to every passage, and it builds a skill you'll use for the rest of your career :)
How to Put the CARS Mindset Into Practice
Work through each passage in this order! Ariana leaves the small tactics up to you.
- Get the main idea of each paragraph. One line per paragraph, in your head or on your noteboard.
- Get the main idea of the whole passage. What is the author arguing overall?
- Read the question. Work out what it's asking for.
- Go back for the detail. Your paragraph map tells you where to look.
- Answer from the passage. The answer is supported by what's on the page.
Checking your paragraph map against a top scorer's is the fastest way to calibrate it, and a 130+ CARS mentor can do that with you in a 1:1 session.
Once this clicks, CARS starts to feel more like a game. For more on how top scorers work through passages, see how 130+ scorers approach CARS passages, and our guide to scoring 130+ on CARS.
Why CARS Is on the MCAT
Medical schools already know you can read. You've made it through your science courses!
What they want to see is whether you can reason through information and analyze it, the way you'll need to as a doctor. The CARS mindset of reading for the main idea and returning for details is that skill, practiced on a passage.
It also helps your pacing. Our guides to MCAT CARS timing and overthinking CARS questions pick up from here.
CARS Mindset FAQ
Is MCAT CARS a reading comprehension test?
Not in the usual sense. Its full name is Critical Analysis and Reasoning Skills, and it tests whether you can analyze an argument and reason with it. Reading every line closely and picking the answer that sounds familiar tends to lead you astray.
How do I go from a 125 to a 130 in CARS?
Ariana did it in about six weeks by changing how she read. She got the main idea of each paragraph and the whole passage first, then went back to the passage for the details each question needed.
How long does it take to change your CARS mindset?
For Ariana, about six weeks, working AAMC passages and giving each one extra time at first. A CARS mindset shift is a habit, so expect it to take reps before it feels natural!
Do I need to be a strong reader to do well on CARS?
No. CARS rewards analysis and reasoning, so a student who reads for the main ideas and checks the passage for details can do very well, whatever their reading background :)
Should I write paragraph summaries on CARS?
A one-line main idea for each paragraph helps, as the AAMC content outline puts weight on following an author's argument, and it tells you where to go back when a question asks for a detail. Keep it short so it doesn't eat your time!
Learn CARS From a 130 Scorer
Ariana teaches inside our CARS Mastery Course, alongside other 130+ CARS scorers. You'll see how they read passages, what they pull from each paragraph and how they work through the questions, so the CARS mindset starts to feel automatic.
Our goal is for you to sit down on test day knowing the drill, comfortable with any passage they put in front of you!
If you'd rather work on it one-on-one, MCAT tutoring pairs you with a mentor who can watch how you read and help you make the same shift. We'd love to help :)
CARS can be so defeating, and it can make you wonder whether you'll get into medical school at all. It is possible, and you can do well in CARS. You've got this :)
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